Artemis
|- | style="text-align: center;"| |} Artemis (Diana) is one of the Ancient Goddesses of the Greco-Roman era. She is known as the GODDESS OF THE HUNT or the GODDESS OF THE MOON. The cypress is known as her tree. Symbols/Attributes: bow and quiver, hunting spears, animal pelts ' Appearance: She was usually depicted as a young woman dressed in a short knee-length chiton and equipped with a hunting bow and a quiver of arrows. History: Artemis was the first born child of Zeus and Leto. Her mother was forbidden, by a jealous Hera, to give birth anywhere on earth or anywhere the sun shines, but the floating island of Delos. Immediately after her birth, Artemis helped her mother deliver Apollo; for which is why she is sometimes called a goddess of childbirth, even though she is a virgin goddess. When she was three years old, Artemis asked her father to grant her a wish. She desired (among other things) a silver bow and to be called many different names. She held a passion for hunting and wanted to roam the wilderness forever. As Artemis was Zeus' favorite daughter and he held a special pride for her, Zeus granted her wish. He also took a vow on the River Styx that he would never force her to marry or have children. Artemis once befriended a huntsman named Orion. Orion was a man who had broken the hearts of many women. Apollo knew of his treachery, but Artemis didn't. Apollo decided to kill him. While Orion was bathing, Apollo challenged Artemis to shoot Orion in the head, which was bobbing above the water. Not knowing it was her companion, Artemis shot him. Other versions say that Orion was escaping from a scorpion, sent by Artemis and Apollo, towards Eos's island, Eos being his current girlfriend. Artemis had already found out when Orion tried to seduce her hunter Opis. The scorpion never caught him in this version, but he was shot by Artemis who had been challenged, once again, by Apollo to shoot the bobbing object in the distance. Orion died, but Artemis put him in the stars with the scorpion constantly chasing him. But According to Homer and Hesiod, Gaea , not Apollo, had sent the giant scorpion to kill Orion because he threatened to kill every beast on earth. The scorpion succeeded in doing its job. In a version by Aratus, Orion took hold of Artemis' robe and she killed him in self-defense. Many stories were told of Artemis defending her virginity from others, including the giant Otus, who had tried to seize her for his wife. Others such as Actaeon were punished for accidentally seeing her nude. Many of Artemis' myths placed her in the role of an avenger. She is said to have caused quick deaths to her victims with her silver arrows. Powers and Abilities: *Expert Tracker *Expert Archer *'Immortality - Artemis was over 6,000 years old and retained the appearance and health of a young woman. She had an infinite lifespan and is not subject to old age. *'Superhuman Strength' *'Invulnerability' - Artemis was not subject to disease or any other cause of natural death. *'Teleportation' - Artemis had the ability to immediately appear or vanish into thin air. Gallery artemispainting.jpg artemisstatue.jpg artemis.png Category:Gods Category:Greek_Roman